Bacigalupi creates an immersive alternate future with ambiguous morality and twisted technology that is enjoyable to visit. Would have been 5* but in retrospect, i don't know that I felt a connection with the characters that grew throughout the novel, and (without ruining the twists) they don't all stick around to grow with.

More a compelling world and an interesting plot than a character driven or emotive experience. You can see that he has the potential to do even more, and that will indeed be a treat.

Nice to get something different like this - many pretty papers out there, but these are a pleasant novelty. My only improvement would be if they were slightly heavier stock - this still feels like throwaway paper, even if it is pretty.

Nice to get something different like this - many pretty papers out there, but these are a pleasant novelty. My only improvement would be if they were slightly heavier stock - this still feels like throwaway paper, even if it is pretty.

Nice to get something different like this - many pretty papers out there, but these are a pleasant novelty. My only improvement would be if they were slightly heavier stock - this still feels like throwaway paper, even if it is pretty.

Nice to get something different like this - many pretty papers out there, but these are a pleasant novelty. My only improvement would be if they were slightly heavier stock - this still feels like throwaway paper, even if it is pretty.

Just as, having read the Thirteenth Tale, I checked back many times looking for Setterfield's next book,so will I continue to do.

The author's style is remarkable, and it is difficult to believe she is so accomplished with only two novels under her belt. Her characters breathe and flex, and she manages a thread of suspense and foreboding that rises and falls but never completely departs throughout the novel.

I really enjoyed If on a Winter's Night a Traveler, even if the mechanics of the book grated in exactly the way the author intended. Over and over he takes you right up to the edge of revelation only to, in a playfully sadistic way, pull you back from the edge.

The world seems to flex in both directions as you become an actor on the stage he sets, move between genders and roles, and in some ways, participate in the action.

Although this series can best be described as snippets of the writings of their authors, it does not take long to get a sense of the dry, sardonic wit of Mary Kingsley. One of the earliest women to explore the continent, and first to summit Mount Cameroon at a time when few men had done so and the expectation was that women would keep their place, she shows the indomitable nature and sense of humour that must be required for such an undertaking.

Personally I would rate this 5* if only the edition were more complete. I will purchase and expect to very much enjoy her full book, Travels in West Africa, even more.

I really enjoyed the breadth of the essays included in "Martial Arts in the Modern World". The perspective of an anthropologist brings a balance to the collection that is often challenging to find in the style chauvanism prevalent in the martial arts community.

Topics are far ranging, and in some cases unique, but I wish they had been longer, more fulsome essays. Many seem like preliminary work destined for expansion at a future date, rather than self contained and complete works.

Still well worth having if your interest goes beyond a specific or narrow range of martial arts.

A believable period piece in an unusual locale and time period, between the world wars with Germany on the ascendency. The lead character is likable, vulnerable and very human, and the plot twists and turns its way to a satisfying if imperfect conclusion.

A great read, and for me the beginning of many more from the same author.